Floating wind technology developer X1 Wind secured the Innovation Award at the prestigious Premios Eolo 2023, led by the Spanish Wind Energy Association (AEE).
The voice of Spain's wind sector, AEE, has more than 300 member companies representing more than 90% of the market. The Premios Eolo Awards established in 2008 recognizes contributions to promote and share the benefits which wind energy generates in society.
Its Innovation Award forms a central part of AEE and REOLTEC's (Wind Energy Sector Technology Platform) action line, supporting innovation and development which drives international competition, market globalization, and cost optimization.
The recent ceremony was held at the Congreso Eólico Español in Madrid and attended by industry leaders, dignitaries, and politicians including Teresa Ribera, the 3rd Vice-president of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.
X1 Wind secured the accolade for its role, leading the ground-breaking PivotBuoy Project, whose floating platform (X30) became the world's first fully functional TLP floating wind platform and Spain's first floating wind prototype to export electricity via a subsea cable.
The project focused on demonstrating the innovative PivotBuoy mooring system configuration which combined the advantages of a SPM (single point mooring) with a small TLP (Tension-Leg Platform) mooring system. This allows the platform to reach deeper waters minimizing the footprint and impact on the seabed. Additional features of the platform include the lightweight and stable floater, which can be easily wet-towed by local vessels simplifying and accelerating the installation process.
X1 Wind Systems Engineering Manager, María Verges, who received the award, said the project not only validated a new structural and mooring configuration but also demonstrated its potential to significantly reduce costs within the floating wind industry.
"We're thrilled to receive this recognition from AEE and REOLTEC on behalf of the entire X1 Wind team and the PivotBuoy Consortium, together with our extensive supply chain," she said. "Thanks to the X1 Wind team for their commitment and dedication, which allowed the project to become a reality. We would also like to extend our gratitude to the European Commission and Spanish Government for their support. Together, we have delivered a landmark project for Spain's floating wind sector, raising the bar and demonstrating the best of Spanish innovation and engineering capabilities. The data collected during the X30 prototype's operation, including self-alignment, stability, and production, yielded excellent results. These findings have provided crucial insights and are now being incorporated into our ongoing commercial-scale projects."
X1 Wind members receiving the Award included María Verges, Systems Engineering Manager, Adrián Oliva, Electrical Engineering Manager, and Jorge Casanovas, Offshore Construction Manager.
Watch the following short videos about X1 Wind's technology and the pilot project in the Canary Islands.
For further information about X1 Wind visit www.x1wind.com.
About X1 Wind
X1 Wind is a disruptive floating wind technology developer. Based in Barcelona, Spain, the firm's mission is to provide highly scalable solutions which deliver clean, affordable energy while reducing carbon emissions across the globe. The company's unique floating wind concept was initially developed by Carlos Casanovas in 2012 while studying at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), before progressing with the patented technology for almost a decade. In recent years, X1 Wind has rapidly progressed its technology, having successfully executed several tank testing campaigns and completed the design, assembly, and load-out of a full-featured part-scale demonstrator in the Canary Islands, which is now fully operational. It has recently been selected by the European Commission to deliver the NextFloat project, an ambitious program accelerating industrial-scale floating wind together with Technip Energies and a consortium of 12 partners, to install the first commercial-scale pilot of this innovative technology in the South of France (read more). The company has steadily been building a world-class team of experts in the offshore wind industry and related sectors.
CONTACTS
Mauro Bianco Scagliarini
PR & Marketing Associate at X1 Wind
mauro.bianco@x1wind.com
+34 610192878
About AEE
AEE is the voice of the wind energy sector in Spain with the aim of promoting the growth of this sustainable, strategic, and beneficial technology.
With more than 290 member companies, the Spanish Wind Energy Association (AEE) represents more than 90% of the sector in Spain which includes promoters, wind turbines and component manufacturers, national and regional associations, organizations connected with the sector, consultants, lawyers and financial entities, among others. AEE´s main goal is to promote the development of wind energy through its interests, research, communication and education.
AEE coordinates research into the areas surrounding wind energy and provides services to its members, meeting their different needs. It contributes to the formulation of the normative framework with a view to the sector developing under the best possible conditions. It disseminates the reality of wind energy and endeavours to raise awareness in society. It sets in motion high-level events at which it brings together prominent national and international personalities. It publishes reports and studies which are a reference.
The Association exercises the presidency and technical secretariat of the Technological Platform of the Wind Energy Sector (REOLTEC) and collaborates with ICEX to increase the presence of Spanish companies abroad. Thanks to the different working groups of the association, which are the backbone of AEE, it is analyzed the entire practice of the areas that affect wind energy such as the environment, R&D, regulation or sector communication.
In addition to being a member of international associations such as WindEurope, where it is part of the Board of Directors, AEE leads and participates in different international projects and initiatives in order to promote the development of the wind energy sector in Spain and in other countries.
